I'm looking at the options I can find to complete an accredited IT degree ASAP and found a couple posts pointing to Charles Sturt. I have an AA degree in Business and MCSE certification and was planning to complete the BS CIS degree at Excelsior until they changed the requirements to where it will now take too many courses and too much time to complete. I have several years of good IT work experience plus the MCSE 2003 certification and I want to just get the higher degrees out of the way to remove that obstacle from higher level job advancement. One option I'm considering is staying at Excelsior and switching to the BS Liberal Arts with the Liberal Studies concentration since this should allow me to transfer the most existing credit plus the most flexibility to find examinations and online courses to quickly finish up the remaining degree requirements within a few months. I will have to get an official evaluation, but based on what I have already completed, I assume I need less than 50 units of credit to finish the BSLA degree at Excelsior. I have lots of community college credit and no upper level credit. I have heard that Charles Sturt University will give 6 classes worth of credit for my MCSE certification for one of their graduate programs, leaving only 6 more classes left to complete their program. http://www.itmasters.com.au/microsoft_stream_2003.htm The courses seem to be very expensive at about $2000 USD per course, but at only 6 courses remaining, the total would be "only" about $12000, so it would be doable and save lots of time. I think I could complete both the Excelsior BSLA degree and the Charles Surt Masters program in about the same amount of time as it would take to complete many distance BS degrees in IT, CIS or MIS I am concerned about accreditation of Charles Surt University though. It says they are accredited by the "Australian Government Qualifications Framework," but I don't know how legitimate that is or if it is more like DETC accredited degrees in the US. Does anyone here have thoughts on Charles Sturt University?
More than 10 minutes passed, so I can't add it this to my original post. It seems like it is quite large. What US school would be analogous to Charles Sturt? Is it a "University of Phoenix" type operation? Better or worse?
Hi, Just completed requirements for CSU degree. Overall very good experience. Highly recommended from my book. Also, note courses prices are in Australian dollars. I looked at your link and it said $2100 australian for foreign students so that is more like 1500 US. Hope it helps
I saw a link somewhere that said they were more around $2600 AUD each. Hopefully, what you saw is the correct dollar amounts. Can you give more details and how it worked for you? What was your background before you started? How was the course material, testing, etc.?
Charles Sturt University is the equivalent of a regionally accredited U.S. university. I think their program is great, and if I were considering an IT Master's, that would be a leading contender. If you decide you're only interested in U.S.-based programs, Brandeis University has one in Software Engineering and one in IT Management, either of which would be about $18,000. Still, Brandeis, not too shabby. http://www.brandeis.edu/rabbgrad/distancelearning/ -=Steve=-
This is from the link on fees from the page you provided. Fees for International students for 2006 are $2100 AUD per subject (click here to calculate fees in your local currency). This cost includes the provision of all prescribed textbooks, student guides and exams. AUD is Australian Dollars. It has been a good experience with the same advisor for last four years. They are intent on strong academic performance and quality at least for me. Would recommend. Hope this helps.
I'm debating whether to get a BS in Liberal Arts from Excelsior (to quickly finish any kind of RA undergraduate degree) and then enroll in Charles Sturt University to enroll in their Master of Networking and Systems Administration degree program or to instead enroll in FHSU or to just complete their BS Information Networking and Telecommunications program. I think that the IT-related BS degree at Fort Hays State University might look better on a resume than a Liberal Arts BS from Excelsior and an MS from a school in Australia. I'm not sure. They may either be skeptical of the Excelsior and Charles Sturt degrees or else accept them and then say I'm overqualified by having an MS for jobs that specify a bachelors degree in MIS or CIS. I'm not seeing where the Masters-level courses in the CSU degree program are in their Master of Networking and Systems Administration program. Isn't a thesis normally required in a US graduate degree? An interviewer may want justification of how their program is truly graduate level equivalent to a local graduate degree. On the other hand, I also like the idea of having a masters degree in the same or less time than it would take me to only complete the undergraduate-level FHSU program. So, Charles Stuart University is still attractive to me for that reason.
Regarding a masters thesis, I never did one. Generally speaking, the masters degree is more vocational than academic (i.e. publishing). Of course, some schools offer 'Thesis Options' for masters but I wouldn't confuse them with the rigor required for doctoral work. In short, I wouldn't worry too much about a 'Master's Thesis'...some may - most won't (arguably). If you're really looking for shortcuts to an IT degree, you may want to consider Aspen.edu. They'll give you 9 credits for your MCSE and was offering entire degrees for $4200. Moreover, a BS is not required for graduate study. Just a thought... Greg
charles sturt university equivalent to USA Master Degree ???? I know, this thread is too old (6 yrs). @SteveFoerster - can you confirm what you said 6 years back if its still valid " charles sturt university equivalent to USA Master Degree" ??? I am really interested in their master program if it is still equivalent to USA Master Degree.
CSU is still a Australian public research university that's a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities. So yes, my opinion is the same.
I would agree. Also, there are professional services that can be used to validate the equivalency of non-US degrees with US degrees.
When I asked my Australian friends about Charles Sturt, I got the impression of a Nova Southeastern, with bit of UMUC, and a pinch of UoP. Sort of, "I wouldn't go there by choice, but it wouldn't be bad if I had to" kind of impression. But, yes, it is a real, accredited, government recognized university.
Depending on the service, and the individual person doing the evaluation, it may or may not be considered "equivalent" to a US masters degree. Especially if they are completing about half through Microsoft certs. Since this thread is old, I wonder if anyone has completed the degree and has tried to get an evaluation done?
I used (World Education Services - International Education Intelligence) on their website, there is an open to get an evaluation preview of an international credential; I signed up and paid $25 bucks for it. Here what it says: However, in my case, AACRO does matter, and I couldn’t find any way to check the equivalency with them without submitting credential for paid evaluation. I am confused and not able to decide where to go Anybody has any idea or do we have any good evaluator of college/university here who can clarify on this???
